Cat lives off McDonald's for a year

'Frankie' abandoned by his New Zealand owners as a kitten

UPDATED 12:33 PM EDT Apr 17, 2013

A cat in New Zealand who survived by living off McDonald's for a year was recently rescued and put on a diet.

Nicknamed "Frankie," the black-and-white tabby started hanging out in the parking lot of the McDonald's after being abandoned by his owners as a kitten, according to the New Zealand news website Stuff.co.nz.

Drive-through customers would toss him bits of fries and chicken nuggets, some even ordering him an entire hamburger patty.

But the rough life and fast food diet eventually took a toll on Frankie.

Jessica Watson, a regular McDonald's customer and field officer for the local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals group, took him into her care after noticing his swollen face, eyelids that wouldn't properly close and matted fur coat, according to Stuff.co.nz.

After a few weeks of living inside and eating healthy food, Frankie is doing much better, but it wasn't easy weaning him off fast food.

Watson says he wouldn't eat anything that wasn't from McDonald's at first, giving her a look like "What is that?" when she set a bowl of cat food down in front of him.

But Frankie now loves his more traditional diet of water and cat food, always eager for seconds.

The local SPCA chapter has fielded so many adoption requests for Frankie that candidates are being asked to report in person to the office and fill out a "personal interest" form.

Distributed by Internet Broadcasting. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.